My First Season

My guest today and I worked together in Club Med Paradise Island in 2003/2004 where she was the choreographer, but her first season was in Club Med Sandpiper in October of 2001 as a Reception G.O. Everyone, please help me welcome, originally from New York and Montreal (yes, I’m claiming her) and now living in Las Vegas, Gabrielle LoRe Seidenberg! Gaby had quite the journey to Club Med. She was working in Montreal, won a staff contest for a trip for two to Club Med Ibiza in Spain and then started working for BMW on the European leg of the Formula One circuit, before answering an open audition call for Club Med that took place in Montreal. We’ll talk how Gaby went from reception to choreographer and the culture shock of seeing so many men in Speedos in the main restaurant during her first season. Fair warning, Gaby and I teased each other quite a lot in Paradise Island (all in good fun) and I’m happy to tell you that she can still hit the ‘ole fastball 18 years later. Also, she’s married to the Coney Island Striker, so there’s that too. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Gaby also hosted the one-year anniversary episode of My First Season (February 8 2022) and was awesome!! Please take a listen!

https://www.myfirstseason.com/e/my-first-season-greg-gaby/

My guest today and I have worked together before in Club Med Cancun in 2004/2005 and he is someone you all know or have heard of. Everyone, from Vancouver, please help me welcome Jenner! Jenner has had quite the career in Club Med. Before Club Med, Jenner completed an undergraduate degree in Physiology at UBC and then obtained a Masters degree in Applied Physiology (department of Kinesiology) at SFU. He started his Club Med career in January of 1989 as an au pair Landsports G.O. at Club Med Moorea, Tahiti, but I will let him tell the story of how he ended up working there with another name you might know, Hammer. I thank Jenner for sharing his stories and taking the time to speak with me, because now he is pursuing a Ph.D. in Public Health (Epidemiology)!

**My First Season podcast has always been free to listen to and is available on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean App, Spotify, Amazon Music/Audible, TuneIn + Alexa, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, Pandora and Listen Notes.

My guest today and I worked together in Club Med Turks & Caicos in Summer of ’94 (my first season), but his first season was in Club Med Playa Blanca in 1993/1994 as a Scuba G.O. He is originally from Minnesota and now lives in Denver. Everyone, please help me welcome, JohnnyScuba! Before Club Med, Johnny served in the United States Navy as a Gunner’s Mate aboard the U.S.S. New Jersey, an Iowa-class battleship. Johnny shares a lot of stories from his first season, as well as our season in Turks and when we met up again in Columbus Isle in January of 1996. Also uncovered during this podcast was that Johnny was the lead singer of an 80’s heavy metal cover band called…wait for it…Alien Force! (I swear to God Johnny, we’re gettin’ those t-shirts made!). Johnny is one helluva funny guy and you’ll get to laugh along with us. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

My guest today is Derek Baron, the creator of the popular travel website called “Wandering Earl”. On December 25th, 1999, Derek left the USA for a three-month, post-graduation trip to Southeast Asia. The idea was for him to backpack around Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam and then return home and start a career in the sports industry (He wanted to be a Sports Agent). When Derek landed in Bangkok, he had $1500 USD to his name and that was it. Since then, he has visited over 100 countries on 6 continents and has lived, worked, traveled and volunteered all over the world. He has been to India thirty times and was even kidnapped by inept kidnappers for three days in Bangladesh (and yes, he shares that story). He visited and stayed three days in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and visited the Galapagos Islands among many more. Derek worked also worked as a Tour Manager aboard cruise ships and I asked him to recount a tour-from-hell story and boy...did he deliver! This very funny story involves Mount Kilimanjaro. Why is that funny you ask? Well, the excursion was in Hawaii, for one, but I’ll let Derek tell that tale. It’s not just the traveling that Derek loves, as he prefers to focus on the human interactions and the life lessons learned along the way. These incredible aspects of travel are what keep Derek Baron going after 18+ years traveling the world. Please check out his travel blog website and his social media listed below. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

https://www.wanderingearl.com/

https://www.wanderingearl.com/wandering-earl-tours/

https://www.instagram.com/wanderingearl/

My guest today had his first season in Club Med Sandpiper in Summer of 1990. He had a contract as an Animator. Here’s the thing though: he actually worked at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus as a Clown and Acrobat for two years and when he applied to Club Med three months after leaving Ringling Bros., he didn’t know Club Med even offered Circus! Everyone, please help me welcome Carlos Ragas! Originally from Rhode Island now living in California, Carlos shares many funny stories with us from his first season. From animation passages gone awry to “borrowing” the water ski boat one night, to winning a trip to Walt Disney World because he did the splits with an Italian choreographer onstage… he’s got ‘em all! Carlos is currently a stuntman and actor and will be on an upcoming episode of my other podcast, Butcher Bay Rejects, and tell us how he got started in the business and the movie and TV work he has done. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

If you want to hear Carlos talk about his life as an actor and stuntman on my other podcast, Butcher Bay Rejects, please see the link below:

https://www.butcherbayrejects.com/e/bbr-ep-30-carlos-ragas-stuntmanactor/

My guest today's first season was in Club Med Turks & Caicos in February of 1987 as a Windsurf G.O. Only here’s the thing-he wasn’t a windsurfer! I’ll let him tell that funny story, a great JoJo story, and another one involving American currency washing up on the beach one morning. Originally from San Diego and now living in La Jolla, California, please help me welcome the always-entertaining, Eric Eaton! Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

My guest today and I worked together in Club Med Paradise Island, Bahamas in 2002/2003. His first season was in Club Med Sonora Bay, Mexico in June of 2001 as a Sound Engineer. Originally from Coney Island, NY and now living in Las Vegas, please help me welcome the “Coney Island Striker” himself, Ian Seidenberg! Ian recounts his first season in Sonora Bay and what it was like coming from New York and then suddenly scuba diving with seals in the Sea of Cortez and riding horses in the Sonoran Desert. He even shares a story about how he was Paul Shaffer’s sound engineer one night in Sandpiper while Paul played keyboards. Being a lifelong Letterman fan, I am very jealous! In his Club Med career, he went from sound engineer to Chief of Animation to Chief of Sports, and he’ll tell us all about it. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

My guest today and I were fortunate to work together in Club Med Columbus Isle in 1999/2000. Her first season was in Club Med Turks & Caicos in 1990 as a Boutique G.O. She went on to become a Chief of Animation and attend the Chief of Sports stage as well. She tells a very funny story about trying to learn to windsurf and JoJo the dolphin not wanting to let her. Originally from California and now living in Las Vegas, everyone, Veronica Margellos! !

**My First Season podcast has always been free to listen to. My First Season is available on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean App, Spotify, Amazon Music/Audible, TuneIn + Alexa, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, Pandora and Listen Notes.

My guest today and I had the pleasure of working together in Club Med Columbus Isle in 1999/2000. He became a Scuba instructor at age 18 and to date, has logged between 3500-400 dives all around the world. His first time in Club Med was as an au pair in Club Med Sonora Bay in 1993 and then he went back to Club Med as a Scuba G.O. in Club Med Cancun in January of 1998. Originally from Vancouver and now living in Las Vegas, please help me welcome Nick Margellos!! Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Nick is now a commercial pilot and he came on MFS to talk about the process to becoming a pilot:

https://www.myfirstseason.com/e/my-first-season-nick-commerical-pilot-and-first-officer/

**My First Season podcast has always been free to listen to. My First Season is available on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean App, Spotify, Amazon Music/Audible, TuneIn + Alexa, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, Pandora and Listen Notes.

My guest today and I worked together in Club Med Paradise Island, Bahamas in 2002/2003, which happened to be her first season as a Tennis G.O. Before Club Med, She attended Arizona State University on a tennis scholarship. Everyone, from Winnipeg, Canada please help me welcome Tannis Goulet! Tannis tells us what it was like her first season and shares an amusing story about a day trip to Exuma, $10.00 all-you-can-eat-and-drink-rum punch and an evening visit to the Atlantis resort (all in the same day), I do not want to spoil at all, so you’ll just have to listen. And yes, I ask Tannis how many times a day in Club Med someone brought up her name and the fact that she teaches tennis.

**My First Season podcast has always been free to listen to and is available on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Podbean App, Spotify, Amazon Music/Audible, TuneIn + Alexa, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, Pandora and Listen Notes.